THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 
UNIVERSITY  OF 
NORTH  CAROLINA 
AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


THE  COLLECTION  OF 
NORTH  CAROLINIANA 


C553.U1 

C88r 


FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


RETORT 

DPOX  THE 

MINE  AND  MILLS, 

WITH 

ESTIMATES  FOR  THE  USE  OF  THE 

NORTH  CAROLIM  GOLD  AMALGAMATING  CO. 


[Chartered  by  the  Worth  Carolina  Iiegislature,  Jan.  30, 1874.] 


BY 

General  f.  J.  CRAM, 

U.  8.  CORPS  OF  EKQINEEKS  (RETlttED)  ACTINO  AS  COSC  UTISI  ENOI'^EKR. 
TOOBTHBU  WITH  THE 

ETC  ETC. 


COLLINS, 


PHILADELPHIA: 
PRINTER,  705  JAYN 
1874. 


E  STREET. 


I 

I 


Map  entitled  Plan  sketch  of  the 
N.C.  Gold  Amalgamating  Company's 
gold  mine  and  gold  extracting 
mills,  etc.,  at  Gold  Hill,  Rowan 
Co.,  N.C.  shelved  separately  as 
Cm912.05 
1874  . 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/reportuponminemiOOcrann 


CONTExNTS. 


PAGE 

List  of  Opficees  5 

Report    7 

I.  Charter  of  the  Company  7 

•  II.  Localit_y  of  the  Gold  Hill  Mine,  and  Character  of  its  Sur- 
roundings   ..........  7 

III.  Description  of  the  Mine  (with  a  Plan  of  the  Company's  Pro- 
perty at  Gold  Hill,  Rowan  Co.,  N.  C.)  8 

IV.  Character  and  Quantity  of  the  Ore  the  Gold  Hill  Mine  affords  10 
V.  Brief  History  of  the  Former  Workings  of  the  Mine.  Chilian 

Process  of  Extracting  the  Gold.  Product  obtained.  Amount 

lo.st  11 

YI.  The  Crosby  Process  for  Extracting  not  only  the  Free  Gold,  ^ 
but  likewise  the  Gold  and  Silver  with  it,  which  are  tena- 
ciously held  combined  in  the  Sulphuret  ores  ;  also  for  Ex- 
tracting the  Copper  contained  in  them  14 

VII.  Experimental  Results  of  Working  the  Crosby  Mill  on  a  Large 
Scale  in  Virginia   .  .17 

VIII.  Operations  of  Mr.  Howes  and  the  Associate  Owners  concern- 
ing the  Mill,  subsequent  to  the  foregoing  Experiments  .       .  17 

IX.  Operations  from  the  time  of  Discovering  Ifr.  Howes'  inability 
to  fulfil  his  Agreements  to  the  time  of  President  Hulme's 

Sudden  Death  19  — 

X.  Action  after  Mr.  Hulme's  Funeral,  to  the  1st  July       .       .  20 
XI.  Elements  or  Data  by  which  to  Estimate  the  Profits  to  be  ex- 
pected from  working  the  Crosby  Process  at  this  Mine  .       .  23 
XII.  Assays  of  the  Gold  Hill  Ores  24 

XIII.  Probable  Profits  to  the  Company  from  the  Mine  and  Crosby 
Mills  25 

XIV.  Policy  of  Working  the  Mine  28 

XV.  Schedule  and  Cash  Valuation  of  the  Company's  Property  at 

Gold  Hill  "    .  31 

XVI.  Valuation  of  the  Mine  Exclusive  of  the  Value  of  the  Pro- 
perty Sclieduled  in  XV  31 

APPENDIX. 

A.  Charter  33 

B.  Testimony  as  to  the  Value  of  the  Gold  Hill  Mines    .       .  .36 

C.  Balance  Sheet  36 


OFFICERS  OF  THE  CORPORATION. 


President. 
LLOYD  P.  SMITH. 


Vice-President  and  Consulting  Engineer. 

Bvt.-Maj.-Gkn'l  THOS.  JKFFERSON  CRAM, 
U.  S.  Corps  Engineers,  U.  S.  Army  (retired.) 

Secretary  and  Treasurer. 
WILLIAM  F.  MITCHELL. 

Solicitor. 

B.  ARTHUR  MITCHELL,  Esq. 

Counsel  of  the  Company  in  Salisbury,  North  Carolina. 

WILLIAM  H.  BAILEY,  Esq. 

General  Manager  of  Mines  and  Mills. 

Prof.  AUGUSTINE  B.  CROSBY. 


Directors. 


Lloyd  P.  Smith, 
Gen'l  T.  J.  Ckam, 
Joseph  G.  Mitchell, 
Martin  Landenberger, 


B.  A.  Mitchell, 

A.  B.  Crosby, 

Dr.  J.  D.  Mitchell 


Barton  H.  .Jenks, 


C.  BocKius, 


2 


E  E  P  O  R  T  . 


I.  Charter  of  the  Company. 

This  is  highly  favorable,  authorizing  the  Company  to 
issue  and  increase  from  time  to  time  its  capital  stock  to  the 
extent  of  §2,500,000  ;  to  erect  mills  with  ample  machinery 
for  working  ores,  to  extract  therefrom  the  precious  and 
other  metals  by  any  process ;  to  purchase  and  own  mines, 
and  exercise  all  operations  for  mining  the  ores  ;  also  to  issue 
mortgages  upon  its  property,  and  coupon  bonds  or  other 
evidences  of  indebtedness  for  the  purposes  of  raising  funds 
for  carrying  on  its  legitimate  operations  :  and  one  condition 
of  the  charter  is  that  the  stockholders  shall  not  be  held  respon- 
sible beyond  tbe  assets  of  the  corporation,  thereby  not  holding 
them  individually  liable. 

II.  Locality  of  the  Gold  Hill  Mine,  and  Description 
OF  ITS  Surroundings. 

This  celebrated  valuable  mine  is  situated  in  Eowan  County, 
North  Carolina,  fourteen  miles  southeasterly  from  the  town 
of  Salisbury.  Railroads  are  continuous  from  Philadelphia 
and  other  cities  to  Salisbury  ;  but  thence  to  the  mine  travel 
is  by  the  county  road.  The  time  for  reaching  the  mine 
from  Philadelphia  is  twenty-six  hours. 

The  real  estate  upon  which  this  mine  is  situated  contains 
about  800  acres  of  land,  a  large  portion  of  which  is  good 
for  farming.  On  this  tract  a  town  called  Gold  Hill  has 
sprung  up,  containing  a  population  of  about  1000,  all  more 
or  less  dependent  upon  the  operations  of  the  mine. 


8 


This  mining  property  is  surrounded  by  an  old  well-settled 
farming  country  furnishing  all  the  necessaries  of  life  in  great 
abundance  and  cheap  in  prices ;  and  possessing  a  very 
healthy,  mild,  and  salubrious  climate  all  the  year  round. 
The  large  timber  tracts  in  the  vicinity  of  the  mine  furnish 
an  ample  supply  of  cheap  lumber  and  fuel.  The  Company  lias 
contracted  for  its  yearly  consumption  of  fuel  for  its  steam 
engines  to  the  amount  of  12,000  cords,  delivered  and  piled 
in  its  mill  yards,  at  the  prices  of  $1.25,  $1.50,  and  $1.75 
per  cord,  according  to  the  quality. 

Common  labor,  and  mechanical  and  raining  labor,  ranges 
from  $1  to  $2,  $2.50,  and  $3  per  day,  according  to  the  skill 
and  aptitude  of  the  men. 

III.  Description  of  the  Mine. 

Mr.  Emmons,  as  State  Geologist  of  North  Carolina,  in 
1856,  made  a  survey  topographical  map  with  sections  of 
this  mine.  His  report  of  it  teems  with  valuable  practical 
information  concerning  its  productions. 

Professor  Genth,  geologist,  has  since  examined  and  re- 
ported upon  its  ores,  the  process  of  treating  them  for  the 
extraction  of  the  gold  in  use  in  1871,  and  the  product  of  the 
process. 

More  recently,  several  mining  experts  of  ability  and  ex- 
tended experience  have  explored  the  mine,  and  pronounced 
the  highest  opinion  upon  its  value. 

As  Consulting  Engineer  of  the  Company  I  made  an  ex- 
tended visit  to  the  mine  last  March,  for  the  purpose  of 
testing  the  Crosby  Process  for  the  treatment  of  the  ores, 
examining  the  machinery  and  capacity  of  the  mine  in  its 
then  condition  for  production  and  future  development ;  also 
for  forming  a  probable  estimate  of  the  amount  of  immediate 
capital  required  to  improve  the  mine  and  construct  the  ne- 
cessary mills  for  producing  \  large  amount  of  gold  and 
copper. 

This  mine  has  three  veins,  differing  somewhat  in  extent 


9 


running  nearly  in  parallel  directions  N.  48°  W.,  and  sepa- 
rated by  about  250  feet,  and  designated  as  follows.  (See 
accompanying  sketch  which  contains  the  portions  of  the 
veins  worked.) 

The  "  West  Vein"  (about  one  mile  in  extent)  containing 
the  "Earnhardt  Shaft"  250  feet  deep;  the  "South  Shaft" 
450  feet  deep  ;  the  "  Centre  Shaft"  600  feet  deep  ;  and  the 
"  Randolph  Shaft"  750  feet  deep. 

The  "  East  Vein"  (about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  in  extent) 
containing  the  " Barnhart  Shaft"  350  feet  deep;  the  "Old 
Shaft"  and  the  "  Lounder  &  Co.  Shaft"  of  less  depth,  though 
not  exactly  measured. 

The  "  Middle  Vein"  (three-quarters  of  a  mile  in  extent) 
containing  two  or  more  shafts,  formerly  worked,  since  aban- 
doned, of  considerable  depth.  The  main  street  or  highway 
passing  through  the  town  follows  along  this  vein.  At  the 
eastern  end  of  this  vein  are  the  "old  fields,"  where  small  veins 
of  very  rich  ore  have  been  found. 

The  extents  above  given  to  the  several  veins  are  all  con-' 
fined  to  the  Company's  property.  But  the  extent  of  vein 
upon  which  shafts  have  been  sunk  does  not  exceed  900  feet 
on  either  vein ;  leaving  a  large  extent  of  vein,  some  4000 
feet  yet  unpenetrated  with  deep  shafts  and  drifts.  There  is 
no  reason  why  these  unpenetrated  parts  shall  not  yield  as 
much  or  even  more  than  the  parts  of  the  veins  which  have 
been  mined.  But  there  is  no  necessity  for  sinking  new 
shafts  to  find  the  rich  ore.  The  Company  has  only  to  sink 
the  Randolph  and  Barnhart  Shafts  100  feet  deeper,  extend 
the  present  drifts  from  these  shafts,  and  also  new  drifts  at 
a  level  of  50  feet  below  these,  to  meet  with  very  rich  ore,  to 
any  required  amount. 

The  existing  shafts  are  sunk  vertically,  in  diameter  8  to 
10  feet  for  some,  and  from  14  to  16  feet  for  others,  in  rectan- 
gular shape  of  horizontal  section,  and  lateral  drifts  or  gal- 
leries are  run  at  various  depths  from  the  shafts  into  the  ore 
veins.  The  thickness  of  the  veins  varies  from  6  inches  up 
to  4  feet,  and  even  to  7  feet  in  some  places.    The  walls  of 


10 


the  veins  are  mostly  "  talcose-slate"  rock.  Pumping  is  re- 
quired to  keep  the  shafts  clear  of  water,  and  drilling  and 
blasting  are  necessary  to  sink  the  shafts,  also  to  loosen  the 
ore,  which  is  lifted  up  by  proper  machinery  to  the  ground 
surface,  whence  it  is  carted  oft'  to  the  mill  for  extracting  the 
gold. 

Besides  the  mills,  buildings,  and  roofings,  whims,  and 
shafts  seen  on  the  sketch,  there  are  other  dwellings,  and  a 
large  amount  of  valuable  machinery,  tools,  and  other  movable 
property  on  the  Company's  property  which  are  of  use  to  the 
Company. 

There  is  a  peculiar  feature  greatly  enhancing  the  value 
of  this  mine,  and  this  is  the  fact  patent  to  all  mining  en- 
gineers who  have  examined  it,  that  the  veins  of  the  ore  are 
continuous,  and  confined  between  walls  so  perfectly  defined, 
that  there  is  a  striking  resemblance  to  a  coal  or  iron  mine 
in  that  the  gold  ore  does  not  exist  in  pockets,  which  are  so 
liable  to  be  soon  exhausted  after  great  expense  of  labor  to 
reach  them,  as  is  so  often  the  case  in  many  western  aurife- 
rous mines. 

The  Gold  Hill  Mine  is  apparently  what  may  be  called  the 
chimney,  or  summit  of  the  gold  bearing  ridge  or  upheaval 
of  30  to  40  miles  in  extent  in  that  part  of  North  Carolina, 
and  which  is  rich  in  sulphurets. 

IV.  Character  and  Quantity  of  the  Ore  the  Gold 
Hill  Mine  affords. 

Its  gold  bearing  veins  consist  of  quartz,  talcose-slate,  and 
sulphurets  of  copper  and  iron,  with  the  gold,  and  sometimes 
a  small  percentage  of  silver  mixed  in,  in  particles  so  fine, 
generally,  as  not  to  be  apparent  to  the  naked  eye.  In  the 
ore  there  is  contained  a  certain  quantity  of  gold  that  is  re- 
garded as  free,  not  tenanciously  held  in  the  sulphurets,  and 
which  is  easy  to  extract;  while  in  the  sulphurets  there  is 
held  a  much  larger  proportion  of  the  gold  that  is  far  more 
difficult  to  extract  from  the  ore.    As  the  shafts  are  sunk 


11 


deeper,  less  of  the  former  kind  is  met  with  and  more  of 
the  latter  is  fouud.  Again,  in  the  veins  ores  of  different 
yields  of  gold  are  encountered,  denqininated  "  poor,"  "good," 
"rich,"  according  to  the  relative  quantity  of  the  precious 
metals  they  contain  to  the  ton  of  2000  lbs.  of  ore.  Profit- 
able working,  however,  is  not  exclusively  confined  to  the 
"good"  or  "rich;"  the  "poor"  may  be  advantageously 
worked,  depending  upon  the  cost  of  mining  and  expense  of 
extracting  the  gold. 

From  evidence  given  to  me  by  several  of  the  former 
owners,  and  workers  of  this  mine,  men  of  experience  and 
ability,  with  whom  I  have  had  free  personal  intercourse, 
several  of  whom  I  am  happy  to  say  have  made  large  fortunes 
from  their  working,  and  good  management  of  this  deposit 
of  wealth ;  from  information  derived  from  official  surveys, 
and  reports  of  geologists;  from  conversations  with  min- 
ing experts,  and  engineers  who  have  examined  it,  and  from 
my  own  personal  observation  and  study  of  the  mine  on  the 
ground,  it  is  most  conclusively  shown,  and  in  my  opinion 
proven  beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt,  that  its  ores  are  yet 
abundant  in  free  gold,  and,  I  may  say,  immense  in  that  con- 
tained in  the  sulphurets — showing  no  signs  of  failure;  but 
as  the  shafts  are  sunk  deeper  and  drifts  extended  from  levels, 
the  quality  of  the  latter  will  be  found  to  increase  and  they 
become  richer. 

V.  Brief  History  ofthe  Former  Workings  of  the  Mine. 
Chilian  Process  of  Extracting  the  Gold.  Product 
obtained.   Amount  lost. 

This  mine  has  been  worked  spasmodically,  I  may  say,  in 
various  periods  from  1842  to  'the  present  time — 32  years; 
the  pure  gold  ore  having  been  treated  mostly  by  the  process 
known  as  the  Chilian.  During  the  war  all  gold  operations 
were  interrupted,  and  books  and  records  destroyed,  and  the 
sulphuret  ore  was  treated  for  obtaining  sulphur  for  the  Con- 
federate army's  use. 


12 

In  1870-71,  Mr.  Amos  Howes  resumed  operations  and 
has  worked  the  mine  to  the  1st  of  June,  1874,  about  three 
years. 

The  Howes  Mill  house  is  seen  represented  as  No.  5  on 
the  sketch,  containing  "  Chilian  Stones" — the  requisite 
"Jaw  crushers,"  "drags,"  "  rockers,"  steam  engines,  pumps, 
etc.  etc. 

In  the  thirty-two  years  the  mine  has  been  worked,  I  am 
satisfied,  and  so  is  Mr.  Crosby,  the  Company's  General  Man- 
ager of  the  mine  and  mills — that  $5,000,000  worth  of  free 
gold,  in  the  ore  has  been  produced,  but  at  what  profit,  in 
the  whole  ^^er  ton  of  the  ore,  it  is  impossible  to  state,  not 
knowing  the  total  number  of  tons  used,  nor  the  expense  of 
mining,  nor  the  expense  of  extracting  the  gold  by  the  Chi- 
lian process  for  the  whole  period  of  that  product. 

Mr.  Crosby  estimates  the  cost  of  producing  this  $5,000,000 
at  $2,250,000  ;  leaving  a  net  of  $2,750,000  to  the  producers. 

In  Mr.  Emmons'  report,  already  referred  to,  I  find  it 
stated,  "  in  the  years  of  1854-56,  for  a  period  of  nineteen 
consecutive  months,  during  which  all  that  was  worked  was 
"  poor"  ore  from  the  Earnhardt  Shaft,  "  west  vein,"  the 
product,  as  shown  from  the  books  of  the  company,  was 
$136,636.76,  and  the  expenses  were  $76,429.00,  leaving  a  net 
profit  (for  nineteen  months)  of  $60,207.76."  But  as  the 
report  does  not  state  the  number  of  tons  of  all  the  ore  used, 
I  cannot  give  the  net  profit  per  ton  ;  still  we  perceive  that 
the  handsome  net  of  $3168.83  per  month  average  for  that 
period,  was  realized  from  the  ore  denominated  "  poor." 

In  Mr.  Howes'  three  years  period  of  working,  he  claims 
to  have  produced  $200,000,  using  up  8400  tons  of  ore,  re- 
alizing an  average  of  $23.81  per  ton.  And  he  claims  to 
have  saved  by  his  Chilian  Mill  process,  33  per  cent,  of  all 
the  gold  in  the  ore  used.  He  has  not  sunk  the  shafts  an 
inch,  nor  extended  the  drifts  of  any  consequence,  but  worked 
what  was  left  in  the  mine  by  the  miners. 

Embraced  in  this  product  there  was  a  special  result  which 
I  adduce  to  show  the  appropriateness  of  the  terms  "  poor," 


13 


"  good,"  and  "  rich,"  as  applied  to  the  ores  in  different  parts 
of  the  same  vein.  Out  of  the  Barnliardt  shaft  75  tons  were 
used,  from  which  he  realized  $15,000  in  free  gold — a  yield 
of  $200  per  ton. 

More  of  the  special  products  I  will  not  present,  though 
there  are  plenty  of  them,  for  it  is  far  safer  for  our  company 
to  use  results  in  our  calculations  of  average  yields  for  long 
periods  of  working  than  to  frame  hopes  upon  an  expecta- 
tion of  always  finding  "rich"  or  even  "good"  ores  in  the 
veins.  It  is  safer  to  take  the  "  poor"  with  the  "  good"  and 
"  rich." 

Here  I  bring  prominently  to  notice  the  great  defects  in- 
separable from  the  Chilian  process  at  this  important  mine,  in- 
asmuch as  it  realizes  little  or  nothing,  but  from  the  free  gold  in 
the  ore,  leaving  that  which  is  combined  tenaciously,  whether 
chemically  or  mechanically,  in  the  sulphurets  unrealized. 

Professor  Genth,  after  careful  examination,  reports  in 
1871,  that  "down  to  that  year  only  20  per  cent,  of  the  gold 
in  the  ore  treated  was  obtained  by  the  Chilian  or  other  pro- 
cesses used  from  the  beginning ;  leaving  80  per  cent,  lost  on 
account  of  the  imperfect  process  of  the  extractions  of  the 
gold." 

Applying  Genth's  ratios  of  per  cent.,  or  of  the  realized 
and  unrealized,  prior  to  1871,  to  Crosby's  estimate  of  the 
total  amount  of  gold  produced  from  the  mine,  it  is  easy  to 
see  there  must  have  been  in  all  the  ore  worked  by  all  parties, 
$24,600,000  worth,  and  as  $5,000,000  have  been  saved, 
$19,600,000  of  gold  in  the  ore  must  have  been  unrealized,  or 
lost. 

The  inability  by  the  processes  used  to  subdue  the  sul- 
phurets, and  the  non-prevention,  in  the  extraction  of  the 
free  gold,  of  the  attenuated  particles  escaping  before  amal- 
gamating, are  the  chief  causes  of  the  enormous  loss. 

On  a  careful  analysis  of  data  given  me  by  Mr.  Howes 
himself  I  find  the  cost  for  milling  by  the  Chilian  process 
in  his  mill,  has  averaged  $13.64  per  ton  of  ore  worked.  He 
told  me  his  mill,  running  continually  with  three  Chilian 


14 


stones  with  the  requisite  crushers,  drags,  rockers,  etc.,  18 
hours  (the  day's  work),  treated  seven  tons  per  day. 

He  gave  as  the  running  cost  of  raising  the  ore  to  the  sur- 
face and  transportation  to  the  mill,  $7  per  ton. 

In  going  back  of  Mr.  Howes'  operations,  and  even  in- 
cluding his  own,  it  is  probably  impossible  for  any  one  to 
ascertain  more  accurately  than  Mr.  Crosby  has  estimated 
what  the  whole  amount  realized  from  the  mine  has  cost 
under  managements  good,  bad,  and  indifferent.  The  high 
price,  which  is  increasing,  and  the  inevitable  loss  of  mercury 
floating  oS"  in  the  process  of  amalgamating  and  carrying 
with  it  much  of  the  free  gold,  in  minute  particles,  are  heavy 
drawbacks  upon  the  profits  of  this  Chilian  process. 

Tailings  or  scoria,  from  former  workings,  have  been 
accumulating  since  1842,  and,  notwithstanding  the  dissipa- 
tion, there  is  a  large  quantity  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
the  mine  still  left,  which,  having  gone  through  the  crushing 
and  pulverizing  operations  of  the  Chilian  mill,  and  having 
been  subjected  so  long  to  the  influence  of  the  atmosphere, 
are  in  a  favorable  condition  to  be  worked  over  by  any  pro- 
cess that  can  extract  gold  and  silver  from  sulphurets. 
These,  I  find,  extend  for  miles  down  the  ravines,  where 
they  have  been  washed  by  the  freshets.  These  tailings,  in 
my  opinion,  possess  value. 

VI.  The  Crosby  Process  for  Extracting  not  only 
THE  Free  Gold,  but  likewise  the  Gold  and  Silver 

WITH  IT,  WHICH  ARE  TENACIOUSLY  HELD  COMBINED  IN 
THE   SULPHUKET   OrES  ;    ALSO    FOR    EXTRACTING  THE 

Copper  contained  in  them. 

After  recognizing  the  enormous  loss  of  gold  at  the  Gold 
Hill  Mine,  to  say  nothing  of  the  vast  amounts  lost  from  like 
causes  at  other  mines  in  our  country,  we  shall  be  able  to 
appreciate  the  ingenious  eftbrts  that  have  been  exerted  in 
the  struggle  to  overcome  these  obstinate  sulphuret  ores. 
Of  all  who  have  entered  the  arena  for  this  important  pur- 


15 


pose,  Mr.  Crosby,  after  years  of  patient  study,  labor,  and 
large  expenditure  of  money,  regulated  by  a  highly  scientific 
and  practical  mind,  seems  to  be  the  only  one  who  has  suc- 
cessfully accomplished  the  desideratum  of  extracting  the 
most  valuable  of  the  metals  from  sulphuret  ores  upon  a 
scale  large  enough  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  gold  and 
silver  and  copper  mining  wants  of  our  extended  country. 
And  there  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  ere  long  this  valua- 
ble practical  process  will  be  introduced  in  foreign  countries 
wherever  the  sulphuret  ores  exist. 

Brief  Description  of  the  Crosby  Process. 

The  ore  is  thrown  by  hand  into  a  crusher,  which 
reduces  the  lumps  to  the  size  of  a  hickory  nut  and  smaller; 
thence  passing  into  a  pulverizing  machine  it  is  reduced  to 
the  size  that  would  go  through  a  mesh  of  8  or  10  to  the 
inch  ;  thence  passing  into  a  heated  cylinder  which  revolves, 
carrying  the  ore  around  with  it,  the  ore  becomes  roasted 
and  all  the  sulphur  utterly  burnt  out,  the  fumes  and  delete- 
rious gases  escaping  through  a  funnel-shaped  chimney  into 
the  upper  air,  and  thus  keeping  the  atmosphere  in  the  mill 
healthy  for  the  operatives. 

After  the  ore  is  sufficiently  roasted  to  completely  de- 
sulphurize it,  it  immediately  passes  through  a  cooling 
trough  or  tube,  laid  in  cold  water,  and  thence  into  a 
burr  m.ill,  where  between  the  upper  and  nether  stones  it 
is  ground  to  powder.  In  this  state  the  ore  is  elevated  into 
leaching  tubs,  into  which  water  is  now  also  admitted,  and 
the  leaching  of  the  ore  is  continued  six  hours;  then  the 
water  is  drawn  off  into  appropriate  vessels  in  which  the 
copper  is  precipitated  by  iron,  and  saved.  After  this,  the 
ore  pulp,  which  is  in  a  condition  of  paste  freed  from  copper, 
passes  into  wooden  amalgamating  tanks,  into  which  the 
mercury  is  let,  and  the  mass  is  stirred  for  six  hours.  This 
stirring  is  done  by  a  belt  from  the  shaft  whirling  the  arms 
of  the  stirrer  within  the  tanks  with  a  properly  regulated 
velocity.    After  sufficient  stirring,  the  mass  of  combined 


16 


ore  pulp  and  mercury  is  diluted  with  water  to  the  brim  of 
the  tanks,  and  after  six  hours  drawing  off,  the  amalgam  of 
gold  (holding  with  it  the  silver,  if  any  be  in  the  ore)  is 
found  in  a  close  strainer  box  at  the  bottom  of  the  amalga- 
mating machine,  and  the  free  mercury  which  is  left  is  forced, 
by  a  most  ingenious  contrivance,  back  without  loss  into  the 
tank  to  unite  with  another  batch  of  ore  paste  which  imme- 
diately comes  in  to  be  amalgamated. 

It  is  evident  from  this  description,  I  think,  that  in  this 
process  neither  the  attenuated  particles  of  gold  nor  the  mer- 
cury can  escape  during  the  amalgamation,  as  it  all  goes  on 
in  close  confinement.  If  not  evident  from  the  description, 
one  has  only  to  examine  the  machine  to  be  convinced  not 
only  of  this  fact,  but  also  that  all  must  be  saved  that  is  of 
any  value  in  gold  or  silver  contained  in  the  ore  pulp  after 
entering  the  amalgamating  tanks.  The  copper  is  precipi- 
tated and  saved  without  being  allowed  to  enter  the  amalga- 
mating tanks.  One  might  think,  that  during  the  roasting, 
gold  may  escape  up  the  chimney  in  free  attenuated  parti- 
cles, or  in  combination  with  gas  from  the  sulphur;  and 
that  there  may  be  an  escape  of  very  fine  particles  of  gold 
during  the  grinding.  But  I  understand  Mr.  Crosby — in 
the  arrangement  and  mechanism  of  his  machinery — has 
successfully  provided  for  preventing  these  contingencies,  so 
as  to  experience  very  little,  if  any,  loss  of  gold  or  mercury 
during  the  whole  action  of  the  mill.  The  whole  process, 
from  the  time  when  the  raw  ore  enters  the  crusher  to  the 
time  when  the  amalgam  is  taken  from  the  strainer  box,  is 
by  a  continuous  motion  of  the  ore  passing  through  the 
several  machines  composing  the  mill,  until  reaching  the 
leaching  tubs,  with  but  very  little  labor  in  personal 
handling. 

The  amalgamation  completed,  the  amalgam  is  taken 
from  the  strainer  box  to  be  retorted  in  the  usual  way  to 
separate  the  gold  and  silver  from  the  mercury.  The  mint 
separates  the  gold  from  the  silver,  and  returns  to  the  com- 
pany the  true  value  of  each.     The  "gold  buttons,"  so 


17 


called,  coming  from  this  miae  are  the  purest,  I  am  told,  of 
all  received  at  the  Philadelphia  mint. 

VII.  Experimental  Results  of  Working  the  Crosby 

Mill  on  a  Large  Scale  in  Virginia. 

Being  impressed  with  the  advantages  of  this  new  pro- 
cess, an  association  of  gentlemen  engaged  the  inventor  to 
put  up  a  mill,  iu  1872,  on  the  Old  Dominion  (undeveloped) 
mine  in  Virginia,  owned  by  some  of  the  associates.  Diffi- 
cult sulphuret  ores  were  there  tried  as  the}'  came  from  the 
Virginia,  as  also  from  the  North  Carolina  mines,  especially 
from  the  Yadkin  Mine,  whose  ores  are  the  most  obstinate 
sulphurets.  Tons  of  the  sulphurets  and  old  tailings  were 
sent  to  the  mill  from  the  Gold  Hill  Mine,  whose  ores  are 
easier  to  crush.  The  results  of  these  experiments  are  par- 
ticularized, and  duly  recorded  in  my  published  pamphlet, 
"Discussion,"  of  January  1,  187i. 

The  results  were,  that  the  mill,  as  then  constructed,  with 
all  its  newness,  and  consequent  imperfections,  saved  to  the 
pocket  86  per  cent,  as  the  least,  and  93  per  cent,  as  the 
mean  or  average  of  all  the  gold  the  assay  showed  the  ore 
and  tailings  to  contain  before  treatment. 

VIII.  Operations  of  Mr.  Howes  and  the  Associate 
Owners  concerning  the  Mill,  subsequent  to  the 
foregoing  experiments. 

Mr.  Howes,  after  going  to  witness  the  working  of  the 
Crosby  Mill  upon  ores  sent  from  his  own  mine,  made  over- 
tures of  so  liberal  a  character  as  to  induce  the  owners  of  the 
mill  to  move  it  from  Virginia  to  Gold  Hill,  and  plant  it  on 
his  ground,  to  work  the  sulphuret  ores  from  his  mine  of 
average  assay,  as  shown  in  former  assays,  of  not  less  than 
$20  per  ton,  and  from  that  up  to  $10,  as  he  represented  they 
would  be. 

The  points  of  the  contract  were  as  follows : — 

1.  The  contract  to  continue  in  full  force  for  ten  years. 


18 


2.  He  to  furnisli  the  ore,  not  less  than  20  tons  per  day,  to 
the  mill,  and  to  be  paid  therefor,  out  of  the  gross  proceeds 
of  the  milling,  $7  per  ton. 

3.  He  to  furnish  all  the  fuel  required  for  running  the  mill 
at  $2  per  cord,  delivered. 

4.  All  the  water  required  to  be  allowed  gratis  from  the 
surplus  of  that  pumped  from  his  shafts. 

5.  He  to  allow  the  mill  out  of  the  gross  proceeds  $3  per 
ton  for  milling  the  ore. 

6.  After  deducting  $10  per  ton  from  the  gross  proceeds, 
to  meet  items  2  and  5,  the  remainder  of  the  proceeds  was  to 
be  divided  equally  between  Mr.  Howes  and  the  mill  owners. 

Eelying  in  good  faith  upon  Mr.  Howes'  fulfilment  of  his 
stipulations,  84  tons  of  steam  machinery,  shafting,  and  other 
parts  of  the  mill  were  moved  late  in  the  autumn  of  1873, 
and  the  mill  re-erected,  under  the  vigilant  personal  care  of 
Mr.  Crosby  (with  such  enlargements  of  house,  and  improve- 
ments of  parts,  as  the  first  construction  had  shown  to  be 
desirable),  on  the  spot  of  eight  acres  shown  on  the  sketch 
as  No.  8. 

In  February  the  associate  owners  of  the  mill  were  organ- 
ized into  an  incorporated  company,  under  the  charter  cited 
in  Chapter  I.  of  this  Eeport,  by  the  title  of  "  The  North 
Carolina  Gold  Amalgamating  Company." 

At  the  meeting  of  stockholders  for  organization,  John 
Hulme,  Esq.,  since  deceased,  of  Philadelphia,  was  chosen 
President. 

The  mill  was  reported  to  be  in  successful  operation  about 
the  middle  of  March,  but  not  yet  to  the  capacity  in  machinery 
requisite  to  treat  20  tons  per  day. 

About  the  23d  of  March  last,  the  President,  with  a  quorum 
of  the  Board  of  Directors,  including  the  Executive  Committee 
of  the  company,  visited  the  new  mill  and  the  mine  at  Gold 
Hill. 

The  Crosby  Mill  was  run  for  some  days  upon  several  tons 
of  ore  in  their  presence,  and  proved  conclusively  that  the 


19 


Crosby  process  is  a  perfect  success — quite  up  to  the  capacity 
and  advantages  the  inventor  claims  for  it. 

The  mill  saved,  and  has  cortinued  to  save,  86  to  95  per 
cent,  of  the  gold  in  the  ore.  Only  a  fraction  of  gold  was 
found  in  the  tailing;  there  was  little,  if  any,  wastage  or 
flowering  of  quicksilver:  the  mill  was  a  success.  But  the 
Committee  discovered  very  soon  that  unless  money  were 
advanced  by  the  company  to  Mr.  Howes,  be  could  not  possi- 
bly fulfil  his  agreement  to  furnish  20  tons  of  profitable  ore 
to  the  mill  per  day,  nor  even  3  tons.  His  continual  call  has 
been  for  money,  money,  money,  to  repair  his  boilers,  engines, 
pumps,  etc.,  so  he  could  furnish  the  ore. 

The  company  did  advance  its  acceptances  amounting  to 
$1500,  for  which  he  was  to  get  out  and  pile  up  at  the  mill 
200  to  250  tons,  ready  to  be  worked  as  soon  as  it  could  be 
got  ready  to  run.  This  ore  was  to  be  of  extra  assay,  highly 
profitable  to  mill.  He  delivered  from  50  to  100  tons :  but 
when  the  time  came  to  work  it,  none  of  it  assayed,  before 
working,  more  than  from  $8  to  $12  per  ton,  and  most  of  it 
was  rejected  as  worthless. 

It  was  also  discovered  that  he  could  not  furnish  fuel,  as 
he  agreed,  to  the  Crosby  Mill,  without  an  advance  of  money. 

IX.  Operations  from  the  time  of  Discovering  Mr. 
Howes'  inability  to  fulfil  his  Agreements  to  the 
TIME  of  President  Hulme's  Sudden  Death. 

Under  the  foregoing  circumstances  of  Howes'  non-compli- 
ance, it  was  from  prudential  motives  thought  best  not  to  put 
in  immediately  the  additional  machinery  requisite  to  enable 
the  Crosby  Mill  to  treat  20  tons  per  day,  until  the  company 
could  be  certain  of  being  furnished  that  amount  to  mill. 
Nevertheless,  the  mill  worked  on  upon  a  few  tons  of  ore  per 
day,  returning  gold  once  or  twice  per  week  to  the  Treasurer, 
in  quantities  sufficient  to  accumulate  proof  upon  proof  of 
the  great  value  of  the  process,  and  of  the  ability  of  a  20  ton 


20 


mill  to  return  large  profits,  and  the  exceeding  value  of  the 
niiue. 

On  the  30th  of  March  Mr.  Howes  made,  in  writing,  a  pro- 
position to  Mr.  Hulme  for  selling  the  mine  to  a  joint  stock 
company  (not  the  mill  company),  with  a  view  of  improving 
its  machinery,  deepening  the  shafts,  extending  the  drifts,  so 
as  to  furnish  120  tons  of  ore  per  day.  The  mill  company 
to  erect  additional  mills  to  work  this  amount. 

Mr.  Hulme  had,  from  his  own  personal  examinations,  be- 
come so  strongly  impressed  with  the  value  of  the  Crosby 
process  as  applied  to  the  ores  of  this  mine,  also  of  the  value 
of  the  mine,  that  he  fixed  the  capital  stock  of  the  proposed 
mining  company  at  $1,000,000,  and  was  about  organizing 
the  company,  when  he  suddenly  died  on  the  22d  of  April 
last. 

X.  Action  after  Mr.  Hulme's  Funeral,  to  the  1st 

July, 

Another  able  gentleman  and  excellent  financier,  Dr.  J.  D. 
Mitchell,  of  Wellsboro',  Pa.,  who  had  carefully  examined 
into  the  matters  of  the  process,  and  made  the  mine  a  subject 
of  study  during  a  protracted  visit  at  Gold  Hill,  in  the  last 
winter,  while  the  mill  was  being  built,  came  forward  with  a 
well-digested  plan,  diftering,  however,  from  the  Hulme 
plan.  It  was  this  in  substance :  The  North  Carolina  Gold 
Amalgamating  Company  to  increase  its  capital  stock  to 
$1,000,000,  purchase  the  mine,  with  all  the  property,  real 
and  personal,  connected  with  it,  thus  merging  the  Crosby 
mill,  and  the  mine  and  mining  property  all  into  one  owner- 
ship, which  the  said  company  could  legally  do  under  the 
conditions  expressed  in  its  charter. 

The  purchase  was  made,  terms  of  payment  agreed  upon, 
and  approved  by  the  stockholders.  The  deed  was  duly  ex- 
ecuted by  Mr.  Howes  and  wife  to  the  company.  The  pro- 
perty was  taken  formal  possession  of  by  the  company  on 
the  first  of  June. 


21 


Dr  Mitchell  was  elected  financial  agent  to  negotiate  the 
sale  of  $350,000  of  stock,  the  company  reserving  in  the 
treasury  $50,000  of  the  stock  for  working  capital  for  im- 
mediate purposes. 

Dr.  Mitchell  was  also  elected  president  to  fill  Mr.  ITulme's 
place,  and  entered  on  his  duties  as  such  first  of  June. 

n.e  had  previously  arranged  with  certain  capitalists  at  a 
distance,  with  whom,  on  a  personal  interview,  he  was  to 
place  sufficient  of  the  stock  in  his  possession,  to  realize 
$150,000  in  cash,  as  the  company  should  need  it,  upon  an 
absolute  sale  of  the  stock. 

He  was  to  start  on  his  mission  10th  June,  but  was  pros- 
trated by  a  severe  attack  of  illness.  On  the  24:th,  finding 
himself,  as  he  thought,  sufficiently  recovered,  he  started,  but 
before  reaching  his  destination  he  was  again  seized  with 
another  attack,  more  severe  than  the  first.  He  reached  his 
home,  where  he  has  since  lain,  neither  able  to  talk  nor 
write. 

He  dictated  his  resignation  as  president  of  the  company 
1st  July,  but  not  his  fiscal  agency.  It  is  hoped  by  his  phy- 
sicians he  may  be  able  in  a  few  weeks  to  resume  his  fiscal 
duties. 

Lloyd  P.  Smith  was  elected  president  of  the  company  in 
place  of  Dr.  Mitchell,  and  accepted  the  appointment  July 
4th,  1874. 

Since  purchasing  the  mine  activity  has  prevailed  under 
the  company's  General  Manager  there.  Mr.  Crosby  expects 
to  have  the  new  mill  supplied  with  the  requisites  to  treat 
twenty  tons  per  day,  by  the  first  of  August  next.  The 
crushing  rollers  and  burr  mills  are  nearly  finished,  and  will 
soon  be  shipped. 

Two  new  boilers  for  the  Randolph  shaft  are  to  be  finished 
in  a  few  days  ready  for  shipment. 

Two  more  new  boilers  have  been  ordered  for  the  Earn- 
hardt shaft,  but  these  will  not  be  done  till  first  of  August. 

A  new  pump  has  been  put  into  the  water  shaft  (No.  9  on 
the  sketch),  and  pipes  laid  to  conduct  good  water  that  will 
8 


22 


not  injure  the  boilers;  this  pump  to  be  worked  by  the  en- 
gine-power in  the  Kandolph  shaft  house. 

The  machinery  at  the  Randolph  and  Earnhardt  shafts  has 
been  put  in  good  order,  so  that,  as  soon  as  the  new  boilers 
referred  to  can  be  put  in,  no  more  new  machinery  for  the 
present  will  be  required  at  these  shafts. 

Since  the  purchase  many  old  miners  have  returned  to 
the  mine  and  gone  to  mining  at  their  own  expense  for 
i'  tribute  ore,"  which  contains  free  gold.  This  ore  can  be 
profitably  worked  in  the  old  mill,  and  Mr.  Crosby  has  agreed 
to  work  this  tribute  ore  for  them  on  mutual  good  terms. 
So  while  the  new  mill  has  been  necessarily  stopped  to  re- 
ceive the  two  additional  roasters  and  burr  mills,  the  Chilian 
mill  sends  to  the  treasurer  weekly  buttons  of  gold  from  the 
tribute  ore. 

The  Earnhardt  shaft  is  being  sunk  deeper,  and  the  drifts 
are  to  be  extended,  as  soon  as  boilers  can  be  placed  to  lower 
the  water,  by  extending  the  700  feet  level  drift  from  the 
Randolph  shaft,  26  feet  in  one  direction,  and  20  feet  in  an- 
other direction.  Mr.  Crosby  expects  to  reach  very  rich 
ore. 

Mr.  Crosby  is  utilizing  all  the  property,  of  which  there  is 
much  at  the  mine,  and  has  reduced  very  materially  expenses 
as  compared  with  those  of  Mr.  Howes,  and  will  in  a  few 
months  produce  greater  results,  no  doubt. 


23 

XL  Elements  or  Data  by  which  to  estimate  the 
Profits  to  he  expected  from  working  the  Crosby 
Process  at  this  Mine. 

1.  The  sulphuret  ores  containing  the  gold  are  easy  to 
pulverize  and  much  easier  to  crush  than  quartz  ores. 

2.  The  cheapness  of  fuel,  being  from  $1.25  to  $1.75  per 
cord,  delivered  and  piled  in  the  yard. 

3.  The  cheapness  of  living  and  consequent  low  price  of 
labor,  ranging  from  $1  for  the  best  laborers,  up  to  $3  for 
the  best  mechanics. 

4.  The  facility  for  a  sufficient  supply  of  good  water  that 
will  not  corrode  the  boilers. 

5.  The  proximity  of  the  mine  to  all  the  principal  com- 
mercial cities. 

6.  The  smallness  of  the  amount  of  capital  yet  necessary 
to  improve  the  mine  hj  deepening  the  Randolph  and  Earn- 
hardt shafts,  and  extending  the  lower  drifts,  and  opening 
new  drifts  lower  down  than  the  present  drifts  to  strike  the 
richer  ores  of  the  veins. 

7.  The  general  manager  (A.  B.  Crosby)  of  the  mine  and 
mills  and  his  present  assistant  for  work  above  ground  (Mr. 
Noble),  both  being  large  stockholders  in  the  company,  and 
Mr.  C.  Crosby  the  mining  engineer,  for  underground  work, 
are  all  intelligent,  reliable,  and  of  great  experience  in  their 
several  capacities. 

8.  The  cost  of  treating  the  ore  by  the  20-ton  crushing 
mill,  including  wear,  tear,  and  repairs  for  keeping  the  mill 
up  to  an  efficient  working  condition,  is  $4.07  per  ton.  The 
cost  of  a  50-ton  mill  is  $2.57  per  ton.  The  cost  of  mining, 
raising,  and  delivering  the  ore,  after  the  contemplated  im- 
provements are  made,  will  average  not  exceeding  $4  per 
ton. 

9.  As  before  stated,  the  Crosby  process  saves  86  per 
cent,  as  the  least,  and  98  per  cent,  as  the  average,  of  all  the 
gold,  silver,  and  copper  in  the  ore,  as  shown  by  the  assay 
before  and  after  working  it.    It  is  capable  of  saving  99  per 


24 


cent.,  but  to  continue  working  beyond  the  attainment  of  95 
or  96  per  cent,  would  be  too  much  like  splitting  hairs. 

10.  The  commodity  produced  has  no  fluctuation  in  value 
in  the  market,  being  in  this  respect  far  superior  to  all  other 
commodities,  for  which  the  manufacturer  has  too  often  been 
embarrassed  by  instability  of  price. 

With  the  foregoing  data  any  one  can,  by  reference  to  the 
assays  of  the  Gold  Hill  ores  reported  in  the  next  chapter, 
compute  for  himself  the  probable  profits  to  the  mine  and 
mills  by  working  a  "20-ton"  or  a  "50-ton"  mill  upon  any 
given  number  of  tons  of  ore. 

XII.  Assays  of  the  Gold  Hill  Ores. 

This  part  of  the  report  merits  the  close  scrutiny  of  the 
company.  It  is  the  average  of  the  assays  of  parcels  from 
many  different  parts  of  the  mine  that  determines  the  value 
of  the  ore  in  general,  rather  than  a  few  assays  of  particularly 
selected  specimens.  Therefore,  in  the  subjoined  examples 
of  assays,  a,  b,  c,  d,  it  is  to  be  understood  they  are  the  average 
assays  of  as  many  different  lots  of  ore. 

a.  From  Earnhardt  shaft  ia  1850,  844  tons  of  ore 

averagt  d  in  assay  $699  05  per  ton 

b.  From  Earnhardt  shaft  in  1856,  3800  tons  aver- 
aged (poor  ore)  $179  75  " 

c.  From  Randolph  shaft  (rich  ore),  in  1872,  75 

tons  averaged  $606  06  " 

d.  From  the  mine  generally  prior  to  1872,  8325 

tons  averaged  $  67  33  " 

Giving  to  each  lot  a,  h,  c,  d,  its  own  special  weight  in  the 
computation,  I  find  that,  for  their  aggregate  of  13,044  tons, 
the  mean  assay  was  $144.05  per  ton. 

After  sinking  the  Eandolph  and  Earnhardt  shaft  each 
from  50  to  100  feet  belov.^  their  present  bottoms  and  drifting 
about  150  feet  from  each  at  levels  50  feet  below  the  lowest 
present  drifts  in  the  mine,  we  have  every  reason  to  believe 
we  shall  meet  with  a  very  large  amount  of  sulphuret  ores 


25 


certainly  as  rich  on  an  average  as  the  above  mean  of  $144.05 
per  ton,  and  even  richer  in  gold  and  copper. 

Mr.  Howes  worked  8400  tons,  principally  leavings  of 
former  miners  and  considered  by  them  as  refuse,  without 
sinking  the  shafts  or  extending  the  drifts,  of  which  in  free 
gold,  the  average  of  assay  was  $72.15  per  ton,  without 
counting  the  gold  or  copper  tenaciously  combined  in  the 
sulphurets. 

Of  500  chemical  analyses  he  has  had  made  he  informs  me 
as  follows,  viz. : — 

The  least  average  assay  gave  in  gold  and  copper  $57.50 
per  ton. 

The  greatest  average  assay  gave  in  gold  and  copper 
$11,656.00  per  ton. 

The  official  United  States  assay,  and  the  experimental 
assay  as  determined  by  the  Crosby  Mill  of  the  old  tailings  of 
the  former  workings  give  their  average  or  mean  assay 
$21.91  per  ton. 

From  a  recent  return  of  the  mill's  working  on  these  tail- 
ings for  several  tons,  the  certificate  from  the  United  States 
mint  showed  that  there  was  realized  over  $22  per  ton. 
The  average  of  that  lot  before  working  must  have  been  more 
than  $23  per  ton. 

XIII.  Probable  Profits  to  the  Company  from  the 
Mine  and  Crosby  Mills. 

There  will  be  no  profit  in  working  upon  ore  assaying  as 
low  as  $8.67  per  ton  by  a  "  20-ton"  mill ;  nor  will  there  be 
any  profit  from  a  "50-ton"  mill  working  on  ore  assaying  as 
low  as  $7.06  per  ton;  but  at  these  assays,  the  mills  would 
just  pay  expenses.  But  for  assays  higher  than  these,  the 
mills  would  return  a  certain  net  profit  for  the  milling  and 
mining  as  long  as  the  ore  does  not  cost  over  $4  per  ton  de- 
livered at  the  mills ;  and  the  profit  would  be  proportionally 
greater  as  assays  should  be  higher. 

I  submit  the  following  expression  of  net  profits  working 


26 


by  the  Crosby  Mills  on  ores  of  various  average  assays  per 
ton  of  ore  for  each  mill  at  the  Gold  Hill  Mine. 


Average  assay  per 

Net  profit  per  ton  by  a 

Net  profit  per  ton  by  a 

ton.  of  raw  ore. 

20-ton  mill. 

50-ton  mill. 

17.06 

$1.50  loss  per  ton. 

$0.00  per  ton. 

8.67 

0.00    "  " 

1.50  profit  per  ton. 

20.00 

10.53  profit  " 

12.03    "  " 

30.00 

29.83    "  « 

31.33    "  " 

4('.00 

29.13    "  " 

30.63    "  " 

144.05  (mean  of  a,  h,  c 

d)    125.90    "  " 

127.40  " 

200.00 

177.93    "  " 

179.43  " 

250.00 

224.43    "  " 

225.93    "  " 

It  is  calculated 

that  the  mills  would  work  excluding 

Sundays,  300  days 

in  the  year. 

The  annual  profits  from  working  on 

the  ore  of  the  foi  e- 

going  assay  would  be  as  follows : — 

Average  assays  per 

Annual  net  profits  by  a 

Annual  net  profits  by  a 

ton  of  raw  ore. 

20-ton  mill. 

50-tou  mill. 

$7.06 

$900.00  loss  per  an. 

$00.00  per  an. 

8.66 

00.00    "  " 

2,250.00  profit  per  an. 

20.00 

6,318.00  profit  " 

18,045.00     "  " 

30.00 

11,898.00    "  " 

31,995.00    "  " 

'''0.00 

17,478.00  " 

45,995.00     "  " 

144.05  mean  (a,  6,  c,  d) 

75,540.00    "  " 

191,100.00  " 

200.00 

106,758.00    "  " 

269,145.00     "  " 

250  00 

134,658.00    "  « 

338,895.00     "  " 

There  are  two  incidental  sources  of  considerable  profit 
in  working  by  the  Crosby  Process  to  which  I  will  briefly 
refer.  The  sulphur  which  is  liberated  in  desulphurizing  the 
ore  amounts  to  something  like  350  lbs.  to  the  ton  of  ore. 
This  can  be  easily  utilized — converted  into  sulphuric  acid  by 
a  very  simple  attachment,  giving  large  results  of  this  article 
of  commerce. 

Again.  The  final  tailings,  after  the  gold  and  copper  are 
extracted,  I  know,  by  actual  examination,  are  a  substance 
already  prepared,  only  requiring  drying  and  barrelling,  con- 
stituting an  excellent  mineral  paint,  of  superior  color  and 
durability.    From  a  20-ton  mill  I  estimate  a  net  profit  to 


27 


the  mill  of  not  less  than  twenty-five  to  fifty  dollars  per  day 
from  utilizing  this  paint. 

By  examining  the  foregoing  expressions  of  profit,  it  is 
easy  to  see  how  perfectly  Mr.  A.  B.  Crosby,  the  general 
manager,  is  justified  in  the  following  opinions,  which  I 
quote  from  his  letter  to  me. 

"  In  answer  to  your  request  for  an  expression  of  my 
"views  of  the  Gold  Hill  Mine,  I  will  briefly  say  that  I 
"think  it  has  been  and  still  is,  and  will  be,  with  proper 
"  working,  one  of  the  very  best  in  this  country.  I  base 
"  this  view  upon  its  history  and  my  own  observations. 

"It  has  produced,  in  the  opinion  of  those  who  are  well 
"  acquainted  with  the  early  working  of  it,  and  who  had  made 
"fortunes  themselves  from  it,  at  least  five  millions  of  dollars. 

"  The  work  done  on  the  mine  could  be  done  now,  or  could 
"  then  have  been  done  with  proper  facilities  and  a  proper 
"system  of  mining,  including  all  equipments,  and  the  mill- 
"  ing  of  the  ores  for  less  than  two  millions — I  think  not  to 
"exceed  one  and  one-half  millions  of  dollars. 

"The  veins  in  this  mine  are  true  fissures,  and  have  been 
"  worked  in  length  about  one  thousand  feet,  and  in  depth 
"  from  ninety  to  seven  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  and  are  situ- 
"ated  in  a  belt  many  miles  in  length. 

"Several  experts,  or  persons  acquainted  with  the  mines 
"  of  California,  Colorado,  Montana,  Utah,  Mexico,  etc.,  have 
"expressed  decided  opinions  upon  the  Gold  Hill  Mine,  cou- 
"  current  with  my  own. 

"  As  to  the  value  of  this  mine,  if  based  on  the  amount  of 
"  net  proceeds,  with  a  proper  working  to  its  full  capacity,  it 
"would  be  enormous.  And  it  is  well  worth  in  dollars  the 
"  whole  amount  of  the  capital  stock  of  the  company. 

"  The  process  and  its  cost,  by  which  we  intend  to  work 
"  the  ores  you  are  well  acquainted  with,  so  I  will  say  nothing 
"  in  regard  to  it. 

"  Yours,  very  respectfully, 
(Signed)  "  A.  B.  CROSBY,  Manager." 


28 


It  is  seen  that  the  "  20-ton  mill"  alone  working  on  the  ore 
of  an  average  assay  of  the  mean  of  a,  b,  c,  d,  would  return 
7J  per  cent,  dividend  upon  all  the  capital  stock  at  par 
annually. 

A  "  20  ton  mill"  and  a  "  50-ton  mill"  together  would  return 
26f  per  cent,  on  the  capital  stock  at  par. 

And  as  the  ore  would  run  higher  and  higher  in  average 
assay  as  the  shafts  are  deepened,  and  drifts  extended,  and 
mills  for  treating  the  ore  multiplied,  the  returns  or  dividends 
would  be  vastly  enlarged  upon  the  foregoing  figures.  For 
example,  one  20-  and  two  50-ton  mills  running  on  ore  of  the 
mean  assay  would  return  4:6  per  cent,  on  the  par  value  of 
the  stock. 

XIV.  Policy  of  Working  the  Mine. 

Enough  has  bow  been  said  pointing  to  the  true  policy  of 
the  Company  in  respect  to  managing  their  valuable  proper- 
ty, and  the  policy  may  be  clearly  indicated  by  following, 
seriatim,  the  following  estimates,  A,  B,  C,  of  funds  re- 
quired : — 


Estimate  A. 

For  pumping  to  clear  llandolph  shaft   $2,000 

For  burr-mills  and  stones,  and  freight         ....  1,500 

For  crushing-rollers  and  freight   800 

For  four  new  30-horse  boilers  and  freight    ....  6,000 

For  fuel  for  July,  August,  and  September    ....  600 

For  services  of  employes  July,  August,  September      .      .  2,100 

For  contingencies         ........  500 


$13,500 

Of  this,  $10,500  will  be  required  between  15th  July  and 
1st  October,  and  $3000  by  the  15th  October  next.  And 
soon  after  the  above  articles  in  Estimate  A  are  received  at 
Gold  Hill,  the  20-ton  mill  will  be  in  operation,  treating 
20  tons  per  day,  except  for  the  reduction  of  the  copper  in 
the  ore. 

By  the  time — say  1st  November  next — the  above  Esti- 


29 


mate  A  shall  have  been  expended,  I  think  it  quite  likely 
the  mill  will  be  sending  in  handsome  returns — sufficient,  at 
all  events,  to  carry  on  the  pumping,  the  deepening  of  the 
shafts,  and  extending  the  drifts. 


Estimate  B. 

Deepening  both  the  Randolph  and  the  Earnhardt  shafts, 

(100  feet  each)   $6,000 

2  winches  for  "  stoping"   1,875 

300  feet  drifting  at  $7  per  foot   2,100 

Temporary  contingencies     .       .  ....  300 

Timber  and  labor  for  new  cribbing  to  the  deepened  parts  of 

the  shafts         .       .       .       .     '   1.000 

Hoisting  machine  and  gearing  for  three  shafts     .       .       .  3,000 

5000  feet  wire  rope  at  37  cts   1,8.50 

Ladders  for  shafts   200 

Platforms  and  roofings        .......  1,.500 

Tramway  from  shafts  to  mills   1,400 

8  iron  cars  for  ore  transportation  at  $150    ....  1.200 


$20,425 

I  think  it  would  be  advisable  to  make  arrangements  for 
this  (Estimate  B)  by  providing  funds  to  this  amount  by 
about  the  1st  of*  November  next. 

Hence,  the  amount  of  funds  required  for  construction  and 
wages  of  employes  will  be  as  follows: — 


Between  15th  July  end  1st  October,  1874    ....  ,$10,500 

On  the  14th  October,  1874    3,000 

On  the  15th  November,  1874    20,425 


Total  $33,925 


Further  than  this  there  will  be  no  necessity  for  funds 
outside  the  income  of  the  mills  to  apply  to  the  improve- 
ment of  the  mine  to  a  degree  contemplated  for  furnishing 
70,  or  even  120  tons  of  profitable  ore,  to  be  milled  per  day. 
The  Company  should  not  fail,  however,  to  provide  funds  in 
accordance  with  the  above  estimates. 

After  the  foregoing  expenditures  are  made,  and  the  re- 
turns from  the  mill  shall  justify,  the  following  expenditure 
will  undoubtedly  be  required,  but  no  especial  immediate 


30 


efforts  need  be  made  to  raise  the  funds,  though  it  is  good 
policy  to  keep  this  prospective  expenditure  in  view  in 
arranging  the  finances  of  the  Company: — 


Estimate  C.  (prospective). 

Copper  apparatus  for  the  20-ton  mill  $  6,000 

Two  50-ton  Crosby  Mills,  complete  .  .  .  .  '  .  60,000 
^Renewal  of  cribbing  in  upper  parts  of  shafts     .       .       .  4,500 

Additional  hoisting  machinery   3,000 

Renewal  of  platforms  and  repairs  to  roofs  .       .       .       .  1,500 
Fifty  new  tenement  buildings,  for  decently  housing  250 
employes,  and  repairing  some  old  ones.    For  these 
rent  would  be  paid  to  the  Company  ....  10,750 
Probability  of  new  power-saving  mine  pumps  being  re- 
quired   10,000 

Probability  of  more  pure  water  than  the  present  supply 
being  required  ;  my  former  estimate  for  these  water- 
works   7,000 

$102,750 

Of  course  it  is  expected  that  the  funds  in  this  estimate  C 
will  be  realized  out  of  the  profits  of  the  20-ton  mill  as  fast 
as  needed  for  the  prospective  outlays. 


XV,  Schedule  and  Cash  Valuation  of  the  Company's 
Property  at  Gold  Hill.  • 


1.  One  20-ton  Crosby  Mill,  with  all  its  machinery  complete  $22,000 

2.  Patent  right  paid  for  the  process  of  working  all  the  ore 

in  the  mine   15,000 

3.  Two  new  small  tenement  houses  on  this  mill  lot     .       .  200 

4.  Two  good  steam  engines,  one  at  the  Randolph  and  one 

at  Earnhardt   2,500 

5.  Four  new  30-horse  boilers,  two  at  each  shaft .       .       .  6,000 

6.  Cornish  pumps  in  good  condition  in  the  shafts       .       .  15,000 

7.  New  pump  in  water  shaft,  pipes,  and  reservoir      .       .  900 

8.  Hoisting  apparatus,  wire  rope,  etc.,  at  the  shafts    .       .  3,000 

9.  One  Chilian  Mill,  with  crusher,  stones,  rockers,  drags, 

buddies,  etc.,  complete  .   16,000 

10.  Whims  at  the  shafts   1,200 

11.  Platforms  at  the  shafts   300 


31 


12.  Roofings  at  the  shafts  $1,500 

13.  Mining  and  blacksmith  tools,  machine    shop  tools, 

lathes,  etc.  etc.,  shops,  etc   2,500 

14.  Mansion  house,  eight  acre  lot  and  all  out-houses  and 
improvements  thereon   5,000 

15.  800  acres  of  surface  of  land  exclusive  of  the  ores  under 

the  surface,  $5  per  acre   4,000 

16.  300  acres  of  the  Lentz  place  on  which  the  e  are  4000 

cords  of  wood  standing    .......  1,600 

17.  20,000  tons  of  tailings,  average  assay  of  $21.91  per  ton, 

at  SI  per  ton   20,000 

Valuation  exclusive  of  mine  .$125,500 


If  we  had  all  the  money  in  hand  for  the  purpose  of  the 
improvements  above  enumerated,  they  could  not  be  placed 
upon  the  property  for  the  sums  above  estimated. 

XVI.  Valuation  of  the  Mine  Exclusive  of  the  Value 

OF  THE  PkOPERTY  SCHEDULED  IN  XV. 

On  the  return  of  Mr.  John  Hulme  from  the  property  of 
the  Company  last  April,  he  expressed  himself  in  the  follow- 
ing terras  regarding  its  value:  "That  he  considered  the 
Company's  property  worth  at  least  $1,000,000;  also  that 
were  he  to  express  half  of  what  he  believed  and  knew  re- 
garding the  value  of  the  mine,  he  would  not  be  believed." 
This  opinion  has  the  more  weight  inasmuch  as  Mr.  Hulme 
had  formerly  been  engaged  for  three  years  in  gold-mining 
operations  in  North  Carolina ;  and,  moreover,  he  was  of  a 
cautious  disposition,  and  careful  to  say  nothing  that  could 
not  be  relied  on  with  confidence.  He  had  agreed  to  provide 
all  the  money  necessary  to  develop  the  property  when  he 
unfortunately  died. 

In  making  up  my  mind  as  to  the  value  of  this  deposit  of 
auriferous  sulphurets,  to  say  nothing  of  free  gold,  I  prefer 
not  to  jump  at  conclusions  and  say  the  mine  is  or  is  not 
worth  one  million  of  dollars.  This  is  a  large  sum  it  is  true, 
but  there  are  much  larger  sums  in  thousands  of  businesses 


32 


aud  other  property  not  so  certain  or  safe  from  destruction 
as  this  mine. 

Suppose  we  improve  the  mine  and  add  the  two  50-ton 
mills  to  the  property  by  additional  outlay  of  $136,675 ;  the  « 
total  of  estimates  A,  B,  C,  we  should  then  be  in  condition 
not  only  to  raise  120  tons  of  ore  per  day,  but  we  should  be 
able  to  mill  that  amount. 

I  Again.  Suppose  we  should  get  ore  for  the  mills  to  work, 
assaying  only  twenty  dollars  per  ton,  which  is  an  extremely 
low  estimate  and  very  far  below  what  would  be  realized 
from  the  mine ;  nevertheless,  upon  this  assay  of  ^20  to  the 
ton,  as  the  ore  delivered  at  the  mills  would  cost  the  company 
not  to  exceed  $4  per  ton,  and  the  milling  averaged  to  the 
three  mills,  $2.65  per  ton,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the  net  profit 
of  the  mills  would  be  $12.03  per  ton,  and  the  annual  net 
profits  to  the  company  would  be  .       .       .  $430,200.00. 

In  the  stated  costs  of  mining  and  milling  there  is  already 
included  25  per  cent,  per  annum  on  the  capital  invested  in  the  , 
machinery,  etc.  for  wear  and  tear,  contingencies,  etc.  So  we 
have  only  to  deduct,  say  ten  per  cent,  per  annum  on  the  con- 
templated outlay  of  said  $136,675,  which  would  be$13,667.50 
from  the  above  net  profits,  and  we  shall  have  a  net  annual 
income  from  the  property  of  $416,532.50.  Suppo.se  now  we 
allow  $16,532.50  as  salaries  to  the  Company's  officers,  and 
manager,  etc.,  we  shall  have  left  $400,000.  This  is  10  per 
cent,  per  annum  on  four  millions  of  dollars  clear.  And  how 
much  greater  would  be  the  valuation  of  the  mine  based,  as 
it  should  be,  on  ore  assaying  not  less  than  $40  per  ton? 

I  have  thus  shown  how  to  make  this  mine  worth  not  less 
than  four  millions  of  dollars. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

To  T.  J.  CEAM, 

Lloyd  P.  Smith.  Esq.,  OonsuUing  Engineer. 

President, 


Philadelphia,  July  13,  1874, 


APPEi^DIX. 


A. 

Charter. 

An  Act  to  Incorporate  the  North  Carolina  Gold  Amal- 
gamating Company. 

Sec.  1.  The  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina 
do  enact :  That  T.  J.  Cram,  B.  Arthur  Mitchell,  Au- 
gustine B.  Crosby,  Joseph  Q.  Mitchell,  and  Lloyd  P. 
Smitli,  and  their  associates,  successors,  and  assigns,  or 
any  three  of  them,  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  created  and 
made  a  body  politic  and  corporate,  by  the  name,  style, 
and  title  of"  The  North  Carolina  Gold  Amalffamatinoj  chaner  of 

°  the  iN'ovth 

Company,"  and  by  such  name  and  title  shall  have  Carolina 

.         ,  .        „        ,  o  ■■  •  •       Gold  Ainal 

continual  succession  for  the  purpose  of  working,  mm-  garaat.ag 
ing,   milling,  jjurchasing,   manufacturing,  smelting, 

,      .  , ,         ■       J.  ,1       Business  o 

assaying,  reducing,  or  otherwise  treating  ores,  earths,  tueCompa- 
minerals,  and  metals,  and  for  building,  erecting,  and 
owning  machinerj''  and  fixtures  for  any  of  said  pur- 
poses, or  for  sale,  barter,  or  exchange,  aud  for  holding, 
owning,  leasing,  mortgaging,  or  selling  such  real  or 
personal  estate,  as  may  be  necessary  in  connection 
with  the  other  privileges  herein  granted,  and  to  erect 
houses,  mills,  and  other  buildings  upon,  and  otherwise 
improve  any  lands  leased  or  held  by  them,  and  for 
making,  buying,  and  selling  such  matters  and  things 
as  appertain  to  their  business,  and  shall  be  capable  of 
suing  and  being  sued,  impleading  and  being  implead- 
ed, and  of  having  and  using  a  common  or  corporate  corporate 
seal,  and  the  same  to  alter  aud  change  at  pleasure,  and 


34 


of  granting  and  receiving  in  its  corporate  capacity 
and  name,  property,  real,  personal,  and  mixed. 

Capital.  Sec.  2.  The  minimum  capital  stock  shall  be  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars,  shall  be  divided  into  shares 
of  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars  each,  with  power 
to  increase  the  capital  stock  from  time  to  time  by  a 
majority  vote  of  the  stockholders,  to  a  sura  not  ex- 
ceeding two  millions  and  one  half  dollars. 


Office  of  the 
Company. 


Board  of 
Directors, 


Officers  of 
Company. 


Sec.  3.  The  principal  oflSce  of  the  company  shall  be 
at  Gold  Hill,  Rowan  Co.,  with  such  branch  offices, 
located  wherever  they  may  deem  proper,  as  may  be 
necessary  for  the  transaction  of  the  business  of  the 
company,  and  the  affairs  of  the  company  shall  be  man- 
aged by  a  board  of  directors,  of  such  number  as  the 
stockholders  may  select  and  choose,  a  quorum  of  whom 
may  be  such  number  as  the  stockholders  may  name, 
but  for  the  purpose  of  organization,  the  corporators 
herein  named  shall  constitute  the  board  of  directors, 
and  shall  hold  oflSce  until  their  successors  are  elected 
and  qualified.  The  otficers  of  the  company  shall  be  a 
president,  and  such  other  officers  as  the  board  of  di- 
rectors shall  name,  and  all  offices,  except  president, 
may  be  abolished  or  combined  by  a  majority  vote  of 
the  stockholders. 


No  indirid- 
ual  respon- 
sibility. 

By-Laws, 

etc. 


Sec.  4.  The  subscriptions  to  the  capital  stock  of  said 
company  shall  and  may  be  paid  in  such  instalments, and 
in  such  manner,  and  in  such  property,  real  or  personal, 
as  a  majority  of  the  corporators  herein  named  may 
determine,  but  the  stockholders  of  this  companj^  shall 
not  be  liable  for  any  loss  or  damage,  or  responsibility 
beyond  the  assets  of  the  said  company,  and  the  said 
company  may  make,  alter,  repeal,  or  amend  such  by- 
laws or  regulations,  covering  all  points  of  organiza- 
tion and  business  not  herein  specifically  provided 
for,  as  they  may  deem  necessary  and  proper.  Pro- 
vided, the  same  are  not  inconsistent  with  the  Consti- 


35 


tution  of  the  United  States,  or  of  tl)is  State,  or  the 
provisions  of  this  act. 

Seo.  5.  The  said  company  may  issue  certificates  of  Certificate 
stock  in  such  form,  and  subject  to  such  regula-  "'^ 
tions,  as  thoy  may  from  time  to  time  prescribe,  with 
power  also  to  issue  bonds  with  coupons  attached,  or 
other  evidences  of  debts,  borrow  money,  and  buy  and 
sell  patent-rights,  and  dispose  of  privileges,  to  work 
under,  and  use  said  patents,  or  portions  thereof,  re- 
serving royalties  or  payments  under  the  same,  in  such 
way  and  manner  as  they  may  prescribe  and  regulate, 
and  direct  in  what  manner  their  contracts  and  obliga- 
tions shall  be  made  and  executed,  and  generally  to  do 
all  other  matters  and  things  necessary  to  the  prope)' 
and  successful  transaction  of  the  business  for  which 
it  is  organized. 

Seo.  6.  This  act  shall  be  in  full  force  and  effect  from  Date  of  in- 
and  after  the  date  of  its  ratification:  in  general  assem-  '^""'P'^'*'""' 
bl}-  read  three  times,  and  ratified  this  30th  day  of 
January,  A.D.  1874. 

(Signed)  J.  L.  ROBINSON, 

Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
(Signed)  C.  H.  BROGDEN, 

President  of  the  Senate. 


86 


B. 

New  York,  July  lOtli,  1874. 
Barton  H.  Jenks,  Esq.,  Philadelphia. 

Dear  Sir:  Tours  of  yesterday  to  hand.  You  are 
mistaken  in  understanding  me  to  say  that  I  had  been 
on  the  Gold  Hill  Estate  in  North  Carolina,  but  from 
information  and  reports  I  have  received  at  various 
times  from  a  number  of  disinterested  persons  far 
more  competent  than  mj'self  to  judge  of  its  value,  I 
am  thoroughly  convinced  that  it  is  capable,  with  good 
management,  of  yielding  richer  returns  than  any  other 
gold  estate  known  to-day  anywhere.  In  fact  I  have 
never  heard  but  one  opinion  expressed  in  regard  to 
this  property,  and  that  in  support  of  the  facts  of  its 
immense  value,  and  that  only  incompetent  manage- 
ment can  stand  in  the  way  of  its  enormous  gold  pro- 
duction. 

Yours  truly, 

CHARLES  HOPKINS. 


C. 

Balance  Sheet. 


Dr. 

Real  Estate,  $287,053  77 
Patent  Right,  120,000  00 

Construotiou  Acc't,  283,566  69 
Reserve  Stock,  400,000  00 
Expenses,  Gold  Hill,  4,429  59 
Bills  Receivable,  7,905  02 
Interest,  346  51 

Expenses,  1,121  97 

Cask,  •     7,641  35 


Cr. 

Stock  Acc't, 
Mortgages, 
Bills  Payable, 
Gold  Product, 
Loan  Acc't, 


$1,000,000  00 
52,000  00 
35,540  70 
4,423  10 
20,000  00 


$1,111,963  80 


$l,lll,9ii3  80 

E.  E.       WILLIAM  F.  MITCHELL, 

Treasurer, 

Pbii.adei.phia,  July  15,  1S7*. 


OFFICE  OF  TUB  COMPACT, 
y.  E.  Cornel'  Third  and  Chestnut,  Booms  7  < 


/ 


